TRENTON — State officials who are overseeing the reconstruction of Trenton Central High School said Tuesday night they are unsure whether the iconic clock tower is structurally sound and can be saved and incorporated into the new high school that would be created around it.

School and community officials had hoped that the clock tower, entrance way, the school’s auditorium and a portion of the front walls of the building could all be saved to preserve some of the history and charm of the 82-year-old building.

A preliminary look at the building shows that the historic portion may not be structurally sound, said Charles McKenna, chief of the state Schools Development Authority, which is funding the replacement project.

He said the SDA is awaiting a structural feasibility study to determine if the iconic facade of the building will be able to stand on its own if another portion of the building is torn down around it.

The SDA will have to wait until the school district turns over the keys to the state in September to do a more invasive analysis of the structure before making any recommendations on how to move forward.

“Then we will know better what the various options are,” McKenna said Tuesday night at a community meeting regarding the project.

He said once the analysis is complete he will return to the school board to present options. The analysis may show that the portion earmarked for preservation is structurally unsound and should be demolished or that the walls around it would need to remain intact while the facade and tower are stabilized.

“If anything were to change on that I would come back to the board,” Mckenna said.

The clock tower and mechanism were restored in 1988 — and a fund was set up to maintain it — by the Class of 1935, the first to graduate from the building. It’s not clear whether the clock still runs or the fund still exists.

The SDA is kicking in $130 million to pay for the reconstruction of the high school, which is in very poor condition after years of insufficient maintenance and drew many complaints from the community.

Principal Hope Grant said she hopes that whatever the recommendation or choices are, the community will be receptive to hearing them.

“It is my hope that the community stays with an open mind,” Grant said. “Look at what the options are on both sides.”

It has not yet been determined if the SDA will be able to preserve the school’s pool, which is also in the vicinity of the other elements the community wants to save.

Last summer structural concerns mounted during renovations in the auditorium when the maintenance team noticed a crack in the concrete floor and had to shore up the foundation beneath the room with large beams. At the time the maintenance crew said the extent of the damage was unknown.

McKenna said the analysis work would take several months but the SDA plans to approve the site concept plan by October, depending on the results of the analysis. If any changes are to be made to the plan, McKenna said those options would be presented to the district by the end of the year.

In the meantime, work is being completed to outfit the temporary school facilities that will house Trenton Central High School students for the next four to five years while demolition and construction are ongoing.

Everett Collins, the district’s buildings and grounds director, said the portable classrooms at the Cadwalader School are being outfitted for culinary arts, television and cosmetology classes from the Daylight/Twilight Alternative School. The Daylight/Twilight school will become a temporary home for regular high school students. Collins added that work has been completed inside the Cadwalader School – window replacement, gymnasium floor resurfacing, and bleacher and light replacement.

He said he is doing whatever is necessary to make sure that the school, which was most recently used for elementary-aged students, is appropriate for young adults and fits the program needs for the school as well.

Some of the high school students will be housed in buildings rented from churches, and McKenna said work on those buildings is ongoing should be finished by the end of July, allowing district staff to begin moving in.

Once the old high school on Chambers Street school is vacated, the district and SDA plan to have 24-hour on site security to make sure the building is not vandalized or damaged, and a fence will be put up around the building.